Dispensers for wet wipes products such as baby wet wipes, perineal wet wipes, and surface or household cleaning wet wipes are generally designed to be placed onto a horizontal counter or surface located beneath the dispenser. Typically, a dispensing orifice is located in the top of the dispenser beneath a lid, cover, or closure member that retains the moisture of the wet wipes when not in use. Such dispensers are convenient, but there is a desire to free up cluttered counter space by relocating the wet wipes dispenser to an inverted position underneath a cabinet or cupboard. However, not all consumers of wet wipes would want to use an inverted wet wipes dispenser. Some would prefer to continue placing the wet wipes dispenser onto a counter for use.
Inverted dispensers for dry paper napkins or paper towels having a vertical stack of folded or interfolded sheets housed in the dispenser and which dispense from the bottom of the dispenser through a dispensing orifice are known. Inverted paper towel dispensers are frequently used in the public restrooms of commercial facilities. Inverted paper towel dispensers are not readily usable for dispensing wet wipes due to the unique characteristics of wet wipes. For example, a stack of wet wipes having a given size weighs much more than the same size stack of dry paper towels from the weight of the water contained by the wet wipes stack. The methods and structural elements used to keep the dry paper towel stack within the inverted dispenser often apply too much drag force when a wet stack is placed into the inverted dispenser. This can lead to tearing and ripping of the wet wipes when attempting to dispense the first few sheets from the stack. Inverted paper towel dispensers are not designed to retain moisture within the stack of sheets placed into the dispenser. Additionally, inverted paper towel dispensers are not designed for placement onto a counter in a non-inverted dispensing mode; generally, they are hung from a vertical wall.
Therefore, a need exists for an inverted wet wipes dispenser that reliably dispenses wet wipes. A need also exists for a wet wipes dispenser having dual dispensing modes that can be supported on a counter in an upright position for one mode of dispensing or placed into an inverted position for a second mode of dispensing.